"Fade in: the seamy French Quarter of Southern Indochina in the 1930s where the impoverished schoolgirl who will someday be French novelist Marguerite Duras is about to meet and captivate a wealthy 27-year-old Chinese aristocrat," press notes state. "With the older Duras as our guide, The North China Lover transports us on a provocative and haunting journey of awakening and sacrifice, revealing the delicate and indelible effect of life on art."

"A theme that underlies this 26th season is discovery, and The North China Lover features two people taking radical risks, stepping outside the comfort zones of their own backgrounds, their families, even their own hearts — compelled, in part, by this urge to discover. They embark on a journey with no map, not knowing where they will land or if they will end up together or apart, and they do so with the appropriate mix of both fear and fearlessness, breath and breathlessness," artistic director Andrew White said in a previous statement.

The creative team includes Daniel Ostling (scenic/lighting), Ana Kuzmanic (costumes), Rick Sims (sound), Maria DeFabo (properties) and Sheila Schmidt (stage manager). Live music is performed by Betti Xiang, and Tracy Walsh is choreographer.